Julian Valente Pereira: Failed asylum seeker who planted fake bomb outside MI5 headquarters jailed

A failed defector has been jailed for two-and-a-half years after planting a fake stick of dynamite outside MI5 headquarters on New Year’s Day.

Brazilian national Julian Valente Pereira, 33, carried out the bomb hoax at the security service’s Thames House base in central London on January 1.

The incident occurred the day after the deportation notice was received.

Prosecutor Shannon Revel said Pereira was seeking “utmost attention” to his complaints against the Home Office following his prolonged and unsuccessful attempt to remain in Britain.

He first came to the UK on a work permit in July 2018 and later requested asylum, but his request was rejected.

CCTV footage shows Pereira pushing paperwork related to his immigration case through the gates of the MI5 building before taking the imitation explosive from his bag.

He threw it to the pavement with what appeared to be a fuse sticking out of the top of the brown cylinder.

A bomb expert was called and found the device was made of rolled up A4 paper, brown masking tape and rope.

The incident coincided with a New Year’s Day parade in the capital.

The defendant, who lives in a mental hospital in Uxbridge, west London, was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, the court was told.

Giving evidence, Pereira said the device he left outside MI5 would not be mistaken for an explosive.

Following a trial at the City of London Magistrates’ Court, Pereira was found guilty in February of planting an article with the intention of causing another person to believe that the article would explode.

Sentencing at the Old Bailey on Friday, Judge Mark Lucraft KC sentenced him to two years and six months in prison.

The judge said the defendant could be deported from England.

Judge Lucraft noted police concerns at the time that the fake dynamite was a “real explosive” and that dealing with the case “did distract them from other things”.

Judge Lucraft said although officers identified it as a hoax in less than an hour, concerns remained that the fake device could be “a diversionary tactic in preparation for another incident elsewhere”.

He told the defendant: “You are of good character, you show some remorse for your actions, you express remorse and sadness for your actions on that day.

“You now accept that what you did was stupid.”